Conflicting Views
by FiniteXS
Summary: Nothing can go wrong in Rin Kagamine's life. She's an international star living the life of luxury and abundance, so everything must be easy for her, right? That couldn't be further from the truth. Unknown to everyone around her, she's starting to feel the pressure of her work and is unable to do anything about it, for even the strongest of people have a breaking point. Oneshot.


_Note: After reading a short story about happiness, I felt inspired to make this. I'm not really sure why. Just did. _

_To those that are reading my other stories: I'll be updating the more in the future (hopefully) since summer is close. _

**_Thanks to the amazing KFG24 for beta reading._ **

Rin Point of View

"Rin! Rin! Look over here and smile!"

"What's your opinion on all the rumors about you and Piko dating? Are they true?"

"What did you think about the recent concert?"

Putting on a fabricated smile, I waved to the paparazzi. These guys never give up. Why can't they just let me shop in peace? I tried not to sound angry as I shouted, "I would love to answer all of your questions, but I really need to buy my things." The paparazzi, however, remained deaf to my plea and continued yelling over each other at a futile attempt to get my attention.

It was obvious that I wouldn't be able to shop today with the huge mob of people following me around. I sighed and pulled out my cell phone; there was no way I'd be able to escape alone. I pressed the call button and waited for a few seconds. Come on, please pick up, Piko.

_Beeep…Beeep… _"Hey, Rin. What's up? And what's with all the loud yelling in the background?"

"Thank god you picked up," I said, relieved. "I thought you'd be busy today."

Piko let out a small laugh and said, "I'll always be there to pick up your calls. So, you need help escaping?"

"Yeah. I'm down at the game store. Seriously, I thought the costume I was wearing would be enough to fool people."

"Guess it wasn't. I'll be there in a few."

"Thanks. See ya in a bit."

"See ya." The call ended, and I was left alone in the middle of a huge crowd of people. These people seriously need to learn about personal space. I pushed some people away from me and yelled, "Can I please have some space?" Of course, no one listened.

It was five minutes until Piko arrived but still five minutes too many. I heard my cell phone ring, and I answered, hoping it was Piko. "Piko? Is that you?" I desperately asked.

"Holy shit. Rin, you should see this crowd from the outside. There's so many people."

"Probably because of the concert yesterday. Where are you?"

"I'm near the market. I would get closer to you, but there's way too many people." He sounded apologetic, even though it wasn't his fault.

"No need to sound like that. It's not your fault these people are swarming like flies in the summer."

"That's an interesting analogy to use. But I'm pretty sure this is worse than that."

He has a point; the paparazzi is pretty bad. "Yeah, you're right. Be ready to drive."

"Got it. If you don't make it out alive, I'll be sure to play all your video games so they don't feel neglected."

I rolled my eyes, even though he couldn't see it. "Aren't you an amazing friend? Alright, I'm going." I hung up and started to force my way through the crowd.

"Please answer my question!"

"When will the next Vocaloid album be out?"

"Is it true that Meiko and Kaito are going out?"

I wish all of these people would just go away. I mean, why would you ever want a job where you have to _stalk_ people? It's sorta creepy.

Finally, after about ten minutes of shoving and politely declining, I saw Piko's white car. Pushing past the few people left in my way, I ran to the car and quickly got inside. I saw Piko leaning back in the seat, calmly staring at me.

"'Sup?" He nonchalantly said.

I looked back at the approaching mob of people and looked back at him. Frowning, I asked, "How can you be so calm when there's a few hundred people all charging towards us?"

He shrugged and got the car started up. "Because I know we'll be fine."

"Well, whatever. Can we just go now?" I impatiently said. "I don't wanna be here when they begin to surround the car."

He mock-bowed and teasingly said, "Your wish is my command, my princess." He stepped on the accelerator, and we were gone.

I leaned back in my seat and relaxed. It felt good to have personal space again.

"That was just a fun trip, wasn't it?" Piko asked sarcastically.

"The best trip. Couldn't have gone better," I sarcastically replied.

"Did you at least get the game you were looking for?"

Oh right. I forgot about that. I sighed and said, "Unfortunately, no. Fire Emblem will have to wait."

"Don't worry about that. You can just play my game."

"When did you get that?" I asked, surprised. I wasn't aware he got the game.

"Just got it yesterday. I visited the store, and they had a spare copy."

"Seriously? Thanks!" I happily said.

He smiled and said, "Any time."

That went better than expected. Oh, and we were home already. Time seemed to go by quickly for this ride.

Piko pulled up in front of the house and stopped the car. We both got out and went into the house. Or rather, it was a huge mansion that we called our home.

I looked at the mansion and sighed. It was a nice place to live, but it just seemed like too much. I wish I could just be a normal 18-year-old teenage girl struggling with school. But instead, I'm an international singer with tons of fans and money. Sure, millions of people would probably switch places with me if they could, but the pressure was just too much sometimes. It was suffocating.

"Hey, Rin. You alright?"

Huh? I looked over to Piko and saw that he was watching me with a concerned expression.

"You were sorta just…staring at the mansion. Do you wanna go inside and rest?" He worriedly asked.

Oh. I guess I was lost in my thoughts. I smiled and said, "No, I'm fine… it's just…" My smile faded. Things weren't fine. At all. I just want to be normal. No more paparazzi, no more concerts, no more pressure to be the best.

"Rin, you're doing it again," he said. "Let's go inside, seriously."

Quietly, I said, "Do you ever get the feeling that all of this is just…too much?"

"What do you mean?"

"Just…everything. All the pressure that's on you. You can't mess up or else the whole world knows. And all the tension that's between the Vocaloids in the fight for being number one." I paused and sat down on the ground, feeling exhausted. Faintly, I whispered, "It's just so unfair. I just want all of this to end."

Piko was silent for a few seconds before sitting down next to me. Without a word, he embraced me in a hug. I was surprised, but I hugged him back. He murmured, "It's difficult, and I do know how you feel. But right now, there's nothing we can do about it." He leaned back and sadly looked at me. "Maybe you should relax today. I'll tell Mr. Crypton that you aren't feeling well."

I wanted to argue with him, that I was strong and didn't need a break, but it was impossible to argue while looking at his sad expression. "Will he really care about what you say? You're from a different company than me," I said, trying to put up a futile argument.

He grinned at me and said, "Don't worry. He knows that we've been friends for a long time. Besides, if he won't let you, I'll just make him change his mind."

"…Thanks," I said before getting up and walking towards the mansion.

"Hey!" Piko yelled.

I looked back at him, wondering why he called out.

"Fire Emblem is on my bed. Pick it up if you feel like playing it.

Finally, something to look forward to. "Thanks," I gratefully said.

He grinned before getting back in the car and driving to Mr. Crypton's house.

I went into the mansion and was unsurprised to see that it was completely deserted. When I first arrived here, all the Vocaloids, including myself, talked to each other and relaxed in the front room. Now, it was empty because everyone was off practicing. They all wanted to be the best Vocaloid.

"Hey, Rin! Where were you?"

I looked up towards the voice and saw Miku coming down the stairs with a cheerful smile on her face.

"I was at the game store."

"Oh. Did the paparazzi bother you?"

"Well…" I said, "yeah, but Piko helped me escape. I wasn't able to get what I wanted, though."

Miku looked around worriedly at the mention of Piko's name. She quietly said, "Don't mention him. You know the others don't like him because he's different."

I glared at Miku, mentally warning her to watch what she said about Piko. "Mr. Crypton is already letting him temporarily stay here, so why does it matter that he's from a different company? He's been my friend forever, and I don't care about what the others think."

"Look," she patiently said, "I know he's a good guy and all, but you know that competition between the Crytpon Vocaloids is fierce enough. The competition between Vocaloids of different companies is way more fierce than that. It's just best that you try not to mention him."

Right, as if I cared. "He's my friend. I don't care," I stubbornly said.

She shrugged. "Don't say I didn't warn you if something bad happens."

"Got it," I dryly said, "So, why you here anyway?"

She shrugged again and said, "I'm just bored. Done with practicing today."

Of course she doesn't need to worry about practicing, considering that she's the number one Vocaloid. Not that I cared. She's actually a pretty nice person once you get to know her.

Maybe she'd want to play the Wii with me. It gets pretty boring playing alone. I asked, "Wanna play the Wii?"

She looked surprised, but she responded, "Sure. I'm surprised you'd ask me though."

It was my turn to be surprised. "Why wouldn't I ask?"

"Don't you hate me because I'm number one in rankings?"

I let out a humorless laugh and bluntly said, "That's such a stupid thing to care about. All that matters is that you're happy and living the good life, right?"

"…I guess," she hesitantly said, not really looking convinced. Not that I expected her to agree with me so easily. It took me a while to realize that the rankings were stupid. I mean, who cares whether you're fourth or third best as long as you're making millions every time you release an album. Definitely not me. Hopefully she'd realize this later.

"What're we waiting for?" I impatiently said. "Let's go! I wanna beat you in Brawl!"

She grinned and said, "I don't think you'll win so easily."

We both walked towards the game room, boasting how good the each of us was in Brawl. I almost felt like a normal teenager that afternoon.

* * *

After playing a few matches and finding out that we were pretty even, Miku decided to stop.

She put the controller down, content with the amount of matches we played. "I guess you're not that bad, Rin. I think I still won most of the matches," she playfully said.

"Nice joke," I said, "but we both know that I'm clearly the better player."

"We'll have to find that out later then." It was an invitation to play with her later, which I was more than happy to accept.

"Hm… I can't think of any other way to decide. Let's play again next week?" I asked, hoping she would accept.

She frowned when she heard that. "Sorry, Rin. I can't play next week because I have to record some songs, but I can do it in two weeks. Is that fine?"

"No, I can't. I'll be away recording," I said, sighing. It seems like life doesn't favor me very much.

"Uhm… We'll have to discuss this later. I gotta practice singing. I'll see you at dinner. Bye!" She left the room, turning back to wave at me before jogging to the studio.

I waved back at her and left the game room. Maybe I should check out on my brother. Seems like a good idea. I went into Len's bedroom and said, "Hellloooo? Anyone in here?"

"Yeah, I'm here," Len said. He was on the computer, looking up…something. I wasn't too sure what.

"What you doing? Anything fun?" I asked.

"Not really," he said, not taking his eyes of the screen. "Just looking up some singing tips."

Oh. Can't say I'm too surprised. Len is probably one of the most, if not the most, competitive Vocaloids. He really wants to be number one; that probably won't happen any time soon.

"Y'know, Len, maybe you should relax. Stop thinking so much about the rankings and take some time to enjoy the huge mansion." There was no way he would listen, but it was still worth a try.

He looked away from the screen and glared at me. "Rin!" he sternly said, "Our future depends on what our ranking is. What if people begin to lose interest in us, and our sales go down? What'll happen to us then? We can't have that happen."

That didn't work out very well. Exasperated, I said, "Jeez, alright. I was just thinking about your health. You're always so stressed and tense. Not good for a 18-year-old teen."

He waved off what I said. To my satisfaction, his voice softened a bit as he said, "Look, I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine. I'll be able to relax once our position as number one is secure."

Stubborn as always. "Fine," I curtly said, "I'll be in my room." Without another word, I left the room. Before I left, I turned back to look at him. He was staring at the computer again. Not that it was a surprise… Just maybe one day he'll learn to relax.

When I got into my room, I went onto my laptop to check my email. I went through the usual spam mail, mail from fans which I'd answer later, the usual. However, an email from Mr. Crypton caught my attention. I opened it and read it.

**Subject: Schedules**

**From: Crypton**

**To: Rin Kagamine**

**Hey, Rin! I know that I said I'd give you a break this week, but there's been a slight change in plans. We're going to need you to record a few extra songs this week. Show up at the recording studio at 1 P.M. every day this week. We'll record for about five hours or so. Really, I apologize for this but you can have your break later. See you tomorrow!**

I blankly stared at the email. I just recorded a bunch of songs last week, and he wants me to do it all over again. He promised me a break this week. There was no way in Hell I was repeating the same thing this week.

I picked up my cell phone and punched Mr. Crypton's number into the cell phone. There was no way I'd ever let him go back on a promise without at least arguing about it.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mr. Crypton. Can we talk about the email you sent?"

"Sure. What is it?" He sounded sorta curious. That was good. At least he wouldn't ignore me about it.

"Do we really have to do it this week? You promised me a break this week."

He sympathetically said, "Look, I'd change if it I could, but I can't. These are the best times to get the most sales. It'll help us a lot."

"But Mr. Crypton, you sai-"

"Rin," he sternly said. "As I said, I would cancel this if I could, but we need those extra sales. I'll be sure to give you your break later. Just not now. There will be no more discussion of this. I'll see you tomorrow." He hung up, not even giving me a chance to say anything back.

I wanted to throw the phone at the wall, to punch the wall, something. But I knew that it was a stupid thing to do, considering that it wouldn't help the situation at all. Instead, I sighed and calmly put the phone down. Things turned bad quickly.

It was just too much pressure. I lay down on my bed and stared at the ceiling. Honestly, what was the point of trying if everything was going to be like this?

But… I can't stop here. I won't give up that easily. I got up and began to pace around the room, trying to think about something I could do. By tomorrow morning, I was going to do something. Didn't know what. Just something.

* * *

The Next Morning…

Piko POV

I opened my eyes and yawned. I looked over at the clock and saw that it was about 11 A.M. I considered getting out of bed, but it wasn't worth it. It wasn't like people were going to ask one of the least popular Vocaloids to record a song for them any time soon.

Then again, I wanna know what happened to Rin. When I came back yesterday, she wasn't in her room. I tried calling her, but she didn't pick up either. She normally tells me if she has any schedule changes, but I never got a call from her about any changes. Hm… maybe I'll get up, just so I can find out where she is.

I got out of the bed, ignoring the urge to go back to sleep. Finding Rin was more important than sleep, even if I did stay up playing video games until three in the morning.

After I took a shower, I went downstairs to look for the other Vocaloids. I rarely saw them, but maybe someone who knew where Rin was would be there. The only person I saw was Len, who was eating some pizza in the living room. I didn't expect to see him there. At all. In fact, I didn't expect to see him ever since he was always so busy with singing.

When he saw me, he muttered a quiet "morning" before going back to eating. I said it back to him and asked, "Have you seen Rin?"

He uninterestedly responded, "No."

"Oh." I was hoping he knew where she was.

"Why? Is she missing?" He began to sound a little alarmed. That wasn't good.

"I haven't heard from her since yesterday night, and she hasn't responded to my calls."

"Hm…" he said. He thought for a bit before shaking his head. "I can't think of anywhere she has to be."

I was beginning to get worried about Rin. It was already weird that she didn't tell me about her plans, but not even Len knew where she was. I mean, they weren't the closest of siblings, but Rin normally tells Len about her schedule.

"Let's call Mr. Crypton," I said. He'd know where she is. Right?

Len silently nodded and pulled out his cell phone. He pushed a button on the touch screen and put the phone to his ear, waiting for Mr. Crypton to pick up. After a few seconds, he said, "Hello? Mr. Crypton? Have you seen Rin?"

He paused for a bit and then said, "I can't find her. Piko can't find her either. He said he tried to call her but that she didn't pick up."

He waited for a few more seconds. "Alright. Got it. Thanks," he said before hanging up.

"Does he know where she is?" I asked.

"No. He said he's going to try to look for her."

That didn't sound good. "Alright," I said. "If you get a call back, tell me."

He nodded and said, "I'm going to check her room. Maybe I'll be able to find something there."

I frowned when he said that. "I don't think she'll be very happy to know that you looked around her room."

"Then she won't know," he bluntly said before going upstairs. Can't argue with that logic.

There really wasn't a lot for me to do, and I was too worried to eat. I decided to go upstairs and go on my computer. Hopefully it'd be able to distract me.

I booted up the computer and logged onto Skype. Even though I didn't have many friends in the Vocaloid company, I had a few online friends. None of them knew that I was a Vocaloid, of course. It wouldn't have been good for them to know that.

Surprisingly, Rin was on. I messaged her and hoped that she would respond.

**USBPiko: hey rin? where r u? - 12:15 P.M.**

I thought she wouldn't respond at first, but she finally responded a few minutes later.

**RodaRollaRin: i'm sorry piko. cant take any of this anymore don't tell crypton bye - 12:23 P.M.**

After that, she signed off. Oh, jeez, what do I do? I could tell Mr. Crypton about Rin, or I could listen to Rin and not tell him. But what if she was in danger? How would she be able to survive alone? I mean, she had a ton of money, but it wouldn't last her forever. And she has no clue about the real world!

Hm… It wouldn't hurt to let her stay away for a few hours. She needs the time to go away and unwind. I'll have to tell Mr. Crypton about this later, though. For now, I'll just wait.

* * *

Later at 7 P.M…

_Ding dong!_ The doorbell rang throughout the house. Hm? Who could that be? Maybe it was Rin?

I ran to the front door and opened it, praying that it was Rin. Instead, Mr. Crypton was there with an angry expression on his face. I was about to ask about Rin, but he shortly said, "Group meeting. Get everyone in the living room now. We need to talk."

"What about Ri-"

"That's who we're going to talk about. Go. Now."

I wanted to ask more, but I knew that he wouldn't give away any more information until everyone was here.

Within a few minutes, I had gotten everyone gathered in the living room. I sat down on the floor, anxious to hear the news about Rin. Mr. Crypton came into the room, but only Len and I quieted down. Everyone else was talking to each other about singing and other things I didn't care about.

Mr. Crypton cleared his throat and yelled, "Quiet down! This won't take too long, so let's end this quickly." The other Vocaloids quieted down, although they didn't seem too interested.

After everyone was quiet, he continued, "I'm not sure how many of you have been told this, but Rin Kagamine is missing." It was silent in the room, and all the Vocaloids had their attention on Mr. Crypton.

"She's been missing since yesterday night. Unfortunately, we can't find her." Now, most of the Vocaloids began murmuring to each other.

I was about to ask why they couldn't find her, but Len stood up before I could. He stared at the floor, silent. Before anyone could say anything, he quietly said, "What do you mean 'we can't find her'?"

Mr. Crypton glared at Len and said, "You will si-"

"Where is she?" he angrily yelled, returning his glare. "Why the HELL can't you find her?" It would be an understatement to say that I was surprised by Len's outburst. He rarely showed emotion, and during the time I stayed here, he never got angry.

The others uneasily talked to each other, not used to the situation. I definitely was. First Rin goes missing, and then Len is angry? Not normal at all. Even Mr. Crypton backed away a bit from Len.

Len turned and glared me. "And you. You're her best friend, so why don't you know where she is? You're supposed to know!"

I felt myself starting to feel angry. "Hey," I indignantly said, "I don't know where she is _all_ the time. And why're you accusing me? You're her BROTHER!" By now, I was ready to explode from all the recent events that had happened, and Len was going to be the one to get all my anger.

I pushed myself off the floor and moved closer to Len so I was right in his face. "Look, Len, why are you blaming me for all of this? It's not my fault you're a shitty brother that can't get along well with his sister. Stop blaming me for all of this! Maybe it's also _your _fault. Ever consider that? And maybe if you weren't so obsessed with the rankings, you would've seen that she was breaking down from all the pressure of trying to keep up with all the work!"

Len looked like he wanted to yell back, but he looked away. He stared at the ground for a few seconds before wordlessly sitting back down. Good. It's about time I told him that.

Suddenly, I realized that everyone was staring at me. There were varying degrees of facial expression from anger by Mr. Crypton to shock by Miku. The others were somewhere in between. I felt the anger fade and was left with a feeling of awkwardness.

I quietly sat back down and muttered, "Sorry about that. Sorry, Len. I got outta control." He silently nodded but remained staring at the floor.

"If you gentlemen are done," Mr. Crypton sharply said, "let's continue. We are still looking for Rin. We're doing all we can. And Len," he said.

Len quietly said, "What?"

Mr. Crypton's gaze became more sympathetic. "We'll find her. Don't worry. We'll search the entire world if we have to." Len nodded in response but still said nothing.

"All of you are dismissed," Mr. Crypton said. "I'll return tomorrow with more news." The Vocaloids, including me, got up and began to leave.

Before they left, Mr. Crypton announced, "Oh, and one more thing. All practices are canceled this week. Go and relax." There were a few surprised exclamations from the Vocaloids, but they didn't question it. I went into my room, not wanting to face anyone.

I locked the door and sat down on my bed. Groaning, I put my head in my hands. Damnit, this was all too much. I guess I know how Rin feels now.

_Tap tap tap._ There was a quiet knock on my door. "Go away," I yelled. I didn't need anyone coming in here to criticize me for how I acted.

"It's me," Len said from outside. Oh great. Why was he here? "Please, just let me talk to you."

I wanted him to leave, but he sounded desperate. _And_ he said please, which was something I never expected the prideful Len Kagamine to say. "…Fine. Come in."

He opened the door and sat down next to me on the bed. I silently looked at him and waited for him to talk. Finally, he stared, "…Look, I'm sorry about what I said. It was irresponsible of me."

Yeah, it was. I tried to sound calm as I said, "It's fine."

"Just… Do you know anything about Rin? Anything at all?" He looked directly at me with pleading eyes.

I sighed. It probably wasn't the best idea to tell him about Rin, but I was going to anyway. Looking directly into his eyes, I said, "You can't tell anyone what I'm about to tell you, got it?"

He immediately looked suspicious. "You know something about Rin. Why haven't you told us?"

"She asked me not to tell anyone," I calmly said. "Look, I know you don't trust me, but trust Rin. I believe her when she says she'll be fine, and you should to." He looked like he wanted to argue, but he nodded and motioned for me to continue.

I half-expected that he would go to Mr. Crypton and tell him. Good thing he didn't. I continued, "She talked to me over Skype today. I don't know any details, but I think she's fine. Just wait a few more hours before telling anyone, ok? She needs some time away before coming back."

Len was silent as he absorbed the information. Finally, he said, "Thanks. I'll do as you say, Piko, but if something happens, just know that it's your fault."

Calmly, I replied, "Don't worry. I trust that Rin will be fine."

Len looked at me in the eye and just said, "I hope you're right," before leaving the room.

After he left, I let out a deep breath and went to turn on the computer. Maybe Rin would be on Skype. As I typed in my password, I noticed that my hands were shaking. Please be ok, Rin. Please. The computer turned on, and I signed into Skype. Rin wasn't on.

Damn. I turned off my computer and decided to go straight to bed. Let's just end this day. I'm tired of it.

* * *

_Bzzzt. Bzzzt._ What the hell…my phone? Who would call me during the middle of the night? I groggily opened my eyes and blindly pressed the answer button. "Whoever this is, this better be an important phone call."

"Piko?" It was Rin.

I messily scrambled into a sitting position to wake myself up before frantically saying, "Rin? Where are you? Are you ok? Do you need anything?"

Rin laughed at the other end and said, "Yeah, I'm fine. How ya feeling?"

"Rin, come on. Don't treat this like a casual conversation. You've been missing for about 24 hours now!"

"Really now?" I could literally see her expression of mock-shock as she said this. "How can I be missing when I'm right outside the Vocaloid household?"

What. I jumped off the bed and dashed over to the window. Outside, I saw Rin standing in front of my window smiling and waving with her illuminating cell phone in hand.

I really wanted to be angry at her for running away. For making me worry. For causing so much distress. But instead, I laughed; I couldn't stop it. Relieved, I said, "You're ok!"

Although I couldn't see her very well, I could still see the small grin on her face. "Well, duh. Did you expect otherwise? Actually, don't answer that."

I laughed again and said, "Are you gonna come back now?"

She frowned when she heard that. "Hell no! It feels so much better being free. I came back here to get you."

Huh? I blankly stared down at her, uncomprehending. She wanted me to go with her? Was she insane? I slowly said, "Rin… you're only 18. I'm only 17. There's no way we can survive in the real world."

She scoffed and said, "Piko, you're living in the real world right now. The world you're living in isn't fake."

"You know what I mean!"

"Piko," she said as she sighed, "you do realize that we have thousands in the bank under our name and that we're amazing singers, right? We could easily make money by singing a bit if we had to."

She was oversimplifying things way too much. I argued, "Rin, it's not that easy. There are tons of other factors to consider."

"Like what?"

"Well…a lot of things that I can't think of!"

"Alright, fine. Let's try going out for a day by ourselves. If things go back, we'll come back. Sound good?"

All of my common sense said to reject her offer and call Mr. Crypton…but a part of me wanted to take up Rin's offer. To go on a new adventure. Maybe it was time for some change.

I couldn't believe what I was about to say. Hesitantly, I said, "Fine. Lemme pack some stuff."

She punched the air in victory and yelled, "Alright! Pack some clothes, toothbrush, and all that crap. Make sure you bring your debit card, too."

"Alright," I said, still not believing what I was going to do. "I'll be out in a few."

I ended the call and started to pack up. There was still time to change my mind. I didn't want to though. As finished packing up and quietly crept out the door to meet Rin, I decided to make this adventure worth it. After all, what point was there in an adventure if it wasn't fun?

Rin was grinning at me when I got out. She let out a small laugh and said, "Just like _Romeo and Juliet_, huh?"

"Hm… not really. They were lovers. We aren't."

"Well, why not change that?"

…Did she really say that? "Excuse me?" I asked, making sure I heard correctly.

"You heard me," she said as she smiled, although I could see the faintest bit of red on her cheeks.

We have been friends since forever…so I'm sure taking an extra step to being lovers wouldn't be that bad. I shrugged and said, "Why not? I'll be your Romeo, and you can be my Juliet."

With an elated expression on her face, she yelled, "Alright!" and grabbed my hand as she ran to the gate. I wasn't sure about how this would turn out, but isn't that just a part of the adventure? The uncertainty of it? I guess I'll just have to find out.

* * *

Crypton POV

It has been five days since both Rin and Piko disappeared. A few minutes ago, I received a message from them, saying that they were leaving the business. Rin asked me to apologize to Len and Miku for leaving, and Piko asked me to apologize to his voice provider and company. They were leaving for good, then.

"You wanted to see me?" Dell walked into the room, cigarette in one hand and cell phone in the other. It amazes me how he's always working, even when all he has is his cell phone and nothing else.

"Yes," I responded. "We need to discuss the recent events."

"You mean Rin and Piko leaving?"

"What else?"

"Right."

I took a moment to collect my thoughts before saying, "I want you to put some money into their bank accounts."

Dell nodded and said, "Got it."

"Also, I want all search groups to be called off."

"Alright."

"If you haven't already, inform the Vocaloids about the situation. Tell them that I've decided to let them leave, and tell them that I don't know where they are. If any of them want to leave, let them leave."

"Yup."

"And one last thing. Take down the rankings."

"Will do. Anything else?"

"No. You're free to leave."

Dell started on his way towards the door. Before he left, he turned around and asked, "Sir, are you sure about this?"

Hm. It was odd of him to question me. "About what?"

"About…" he trailed off for a second before he said, "everything. Letting them go on their own, telling the other Vocaloids, taking down the rankings, everything."

I sighed and leaned back in my chair. "Dell, I've been a fool this entire time. I thought the rankings would motivate them to practice, not become hostile with each other. All I cared about was money, and that caused me to ignore how the other Vocaloids felt. It was stupid of me to do."

Dell nodded and said, "I warned you about the rankings from the beginning."

"Yes, you did, and now I'm going to try to redeem myself by taking down the rankings."

"It's a good choice," Dell said. He left the room and left me alone.

I sighed and turned my chair to face the window. The streets were full, people were rushing from place to place, everything was the same. No one was able to tell that there was a major change in the Vocaloid program. Life went on as normal.

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